My other tablets gave the laminated ips displays and really don’t notice the gap. I’m sure the pro motion is a larger difference if you had an iPad with it before but definitely never had an issue with performance
Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
In the market for an iPad, which one should I buy?
- Thread starter Hieveryone
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
I guess it’s ok for a lot of people. I can’t get passed the non laminated display. I’d also miss the speakers on the pro and the 120hz display.
For this same reasons I won’t be upgrading to the mini 5 if it doesn’t have a laminated display.
Last edited:
I have never used the Pro version. I only have the regular one and any comparison I have done were at the store
.The non laminated display is better for sure, I am just not sure that it is worth paying that much more. I would not lie though. I do get that hollow feeling when I write down on my iPad's display. I just prefer to save money and live with this, then to pay more.
Speakers are important too if you use the iPad as a media consumption device. I would not. Every time I try to watch a movie on the iPad I get crazy. The display is too small, I can't position it the way I want it to be, there are issues with the screen ratio and the subtitles. Overall for me it sucks for watching movies and I would choose my laptop in any given day. The only case where I would watch a movie on my iPad is when I have no other way and there is no TV, computer or other screen where I can put on the movie. That happens rarely.
The 120 HZ display is also a good option and I bet that for artists this is a must. For regular folks (like me) who use the iPad mostly as a digital notebook I could tell you that there no noticeable lag when using the pencil. I am not saying that the Pros are not better, I am saying that you have to really focus on comparing the Pro and the regular version to see this. And that for me means that for most of the people it's not an issue. If you can't notice a thing without someone pointing it out to you, it's not a problem. Now if you have used Pro in the past then yes it would be a problem for you. For person like me who just bought their first iPad I would not treat it as a problem.
One thing that IMO people don't talk enough when comparing regular iPad and iPad Pro is the RAM. I assume this is what @DNichter means when he is talking about performance (sorry if my assumption is wrong). I do notice the lack of RAM. Btw I realized that it's more noticeable when you have less battery charge left (around 20 %). Then iOS starts reloading apps like crazy. This is the thing I dislike the most. I guess it largely depends on one's usage but I do have issues like that with the regular iPad so maybe my usage is a bit more extreme.
Don't get me wrong Pros are great, but every person should think on their own usage and whether they can use the Pro up to its potential. In the end of the day everyone of us decides if the Pro is worth the price for them or not. And that highly depends on one's usage.
This is why I cannot recommend a certain device. It largely matters on how you would use that device. Take me. I don't need tablet. I have never had the need for a tablet. I have laptop with me all the time. It's the device that I use the most. I am used to it and I have no need of finding substitute for said laptop. It has what I need for my workflow.
I bought the iPad for the pencil because I wanted a digital notebook to write down my notes during meetings at work. For purpose like that the regular iPad is actually great. For purposes like this the Pro is overkill.
I think my problem is that even before the pro which I’ve had for 18 months I had an iPad Air 2 for 2.5 years which also had a laminated display. So I’d just find it hard to go back to having a non laminated display. Before the air 2 I had the original iPad Air and 1st and 2nd gen iPad minis and I immediately noticed the difference.I have never used the Pro version. I only have the regular one and any comparison I have done were at the store
The non laminated display is better for sure, I am just not sure that it is worth paying that much more. I would not lie though. I do get that hollow feeling when I write down on my iPad's display. I just prefer to save money and live with this, then to pay more.
Speakers are important too if you use the iPad as a media consumption device. I would not. Every time I try to watch a movie on the iPad I get crazy. The display is too small, I can't position it the way I want it to be, there are issues with the screen ratio and the subtitles. Overall for me it sucks for watching movies and I would choose my laptop in any given day. The only case where I would watch a movie on my iPad is when I have no other way and there is no TV, computer or other screen where I can put on the movie. That happens rarely.
The 120 HZ display is also a good option and I bet that for artists this is a must. For regular folks (like me) who use the iPad mostly as a digital notebook I could tell you that there no noticeable lag when using the pencil. I am not saying that the Pros are not better, I am saying that you have to really focus on comparing the Pro and the regular version to see this. And that for me means that for most of the people it's not an issue. If you can't notice a thing without someone pointing it out to you, it's not a problem. Now if you have used Pro in the past then yes it would be a problem for you. For person like me who just bought their first iPad I would not treat it as a problem.
One thing that IMO people don't talk enough when comparing regular iPad and iPad Pro is the RAM. I assume this is what @DNichter means when he is talking about performance (sorry if my assumption is wrong). I do notice the lack of RAM. Btw I realized that it's more noticeable when you have less battery charge left (around 20 %). Then iOS starts reloading apps like crazy. This is the thing I dislike the most. I guess it largely depends on one's usage but I do have issues like that with the regular iPad so maybe my usage is a bit more extreme.
Don't get me wrong Pros are great, but every person should think on their own usage and whether they can use the Pro up to its potential. In the end of the day everyone of us decides if the Pro is worth the price for them or not. And that highly depends on one's usage.
This is why I cannot recommend a certain device. It largely matters on how you would use that device. Take me. I don't need tablet. I have never had the need for a tablet. I have laptop with me all the time. It's the device that I use the most. I am used to it and I have no need of finding substitute for said laptop. It has what I need for my workflow.
I bought the iPad for the pencil because I wanted a digital notebook to write down my notes during meetings at work. For purpose like that the regular iPad is actually great. For purposes like this the Pro is overkill.
Having said this I didn’t think I’d really notice any performance differences between the entry level iPad and an iPad Pro because I’m a very basic user. I use it almost exclusively for consumption. I have an iPad mini with an A8 chip and only 2GB of ram. I can notice a difference in performance between the mini and my 10.5 iPad Pro but to me it’s negligible. For what I need my iPad to do the mini is fine. It’s fast and smooth enough. For this reason I’ll be keeping hold of my iPad Pro for a long time. I don’t have any reason to upgrade to the new iPad pros as most of it goes largely unused. I wish they had a middle tier of iPad like the older flagship iPads. They had the right level of polish for me. They had the right level of hardware, above the current entry level iPads but not as wasteful to me as the iPad pros.
Valid and true. Honestly if you have used tablet with laminated display I do think that you will notice the difference
.This is cool! How do you use it? I have noticed that my usage is rather corner cases and this is why sometimes I notice stuff that people don't. For example I might start watching 50 minutes Youtube video. By its 25 minutes I might stop a bit and do something else on the iPad. Problem is once I go back, youtube app is reloaded and the clip starts from the beginning. Something I dislike. On my laptop I do this all the time and I have no issues.
Other instance is that quite often I would open a file, do something and then I get interrupted (at work this happens all the time). First of all on an iPad is really difficult to see all of my open files so it's hard to know how to go back to it. Second it gets reloaded. On my laptop I just have it there.
Add to this the fact that the apps get reloaded if you don't use them for 20/30 minutes (which in my line of work is normal interruption time) I notice this reloading all the time. And I do equate this with low performance for me. I am aware that it's the way iOS manages RAM, but I don't like the side effects and how it affects my experience with the device.
Totally makes sense. I want something in the middle too btw. For example I do want more RAM, but I can live without other options like 120 HZ, laminated display, true tone, USB C, thin bezels, face id etc.
Last edited:
I was using a 12.9 pro before I purchased my 2018 iPad. Sure it was a downgrade, but it’s a fantastic device. Honestly, after having it nearly a year, I wasn’t really sure if I’d even go back to a pro, but ultimately decided to because I’d get a bit more screen, Face ID, better specs, and the ability to use the new pencil, because my pencil use has really picked up.
I also bought the 2018 as a temporary device, so I only had the 32 gb, which, with my iPad being my main computing device, isn’t really enough.
Sure if I put the 2018 next to the pro, the differences are pretty obvious, but using the 2018 alone it never bothered me a bit.
Now, after having the new pro, going back to large bezels and Touch ID would probably bother me a bit, but the overall look of the display is easy to adjust to, IMO. If you’ve never had a pro, it would be a no brainer for sure. You can’t beat the value of that 2018, especially with the sales out there.
I also bought the 2018 as a temporary device, so I only had the 32 gb, which, with my iPad being my main computing device, isn’t really enough.
Sure if I put the 2018 next to the pro, the differences are pretty obvious, but using the 2018 alone it never bothered me a bit.
Now, after having the new pro, going back to large bezels and Touch ID would probably bother me a bit, but the overall look of the display is easy to adjust to, IMO. If you’ve never had a pro, it would be a no brainer for sure. You can’t beat the value of that 2018, especially with the sales out there.
Yea it call comes down to the individual. It’s good we have the choice. If you’re happy with the screen and performance, then go for the $329 iPad.
I would second the $329 2018 iPad or its upcoming new version. If you had one in the past you barely used and then got rid of, try this one out (unless you are bothered by the non-laminated screen, I’m not but some are) and see what mileage you get out of it. If you find it becoming a go-to device, you can always upgrade to pro down the way. If not, you’re not out as much.